Congenital heart diseases are anatomical lesions of some part of the heart that affect 9 out of every 1,000 babies born alive at term.
Half of them are considered serious and require surgical intervention in the first weeks or months of life, meaning 20% of deaths during the first month of life.
Thanks to a surgical technique inside the uterus known as valvulplasty performed by doctors of the Fetal Medicine Unit of the Hospital October 12, national reference for this type of operations within the uterus, the percentage may be reduced.
So far, 7 babies between 21 and 25 weeks of gestation have been operated inside their mother's womb to correct valvular stenosis, that is, severe narrowing of the heart valves, the size of which is as small as a one-euro coin.
To operate, the baby is anesthetized to avoid unforeseen movements while the mother remains awake. A long needle is inserted through the heart through which a catheter is passed with a balloon that is inflated to dilate the area of narrowing.
Intrauterine interventions that help save the lives of babies diagnosed with serious illnesses during pregnancy are increasingly common. Of course, we celebrate it and hope that further research and progress in fetal medicine will continue.
